Phase Change Technology for Energy EfficiencyEcoCore™

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What is Phase Change & How it Works

Phase change is a thermodynamic transition of physical matter

from one state to another due to a change in energy levels of

the material. These transitions are part of our everyday lives such

as ice cubes in a cold drink melting. EcoCore uses a special

phase change material or PCM designed to melt at 75°F, which

is similar to ice melting at 32°F to maintain a cold drink. This

allows the PCM to absorb solar and building thermal energy

during the normal temperature deviations that occur throughout

the day of any office building. As the material changes states it

absorbs energy allowing for natural safe passive energy savings

to occur.

EcoCorePhase Change Technology for Energy Efficiency

Benefits of Phase Change in a Raised Floor

• Reduce perimeter heating and cooling loads during normal business hours

• Use free or low cost cooling to handle the thermal load stored in the panels during non-business hours

• PCM lasts the life of the building (over 100,000 changes)

What is EcoCore

EcoCore access floor panels are steel welded shells filled with

an unique mixture of structural cement and PCM that allows

the panel to absorb thermal energy while maintaining the

high level of integrity and quality expected from Tate’s raised

access floors. This is possible due to utilizing a patent pending

method of mixing microscopic spheres of encapsulated PCM

into the cement. The spheres maintain their size, shape and

integrity throughout phase transitions. This allows the panels to

seamlessly integrate into a raised floor installation providing a low

impact thermal mass to absorb energy during the day that would

otherwise affect both the energy efficiency and comfort level of

the office. The stored energy is then released again overnight as

the temperature drops below the 75º F melting point.

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• Tate’s raised floor panels provide a safe solution for applying phase change material in a building. By embedding the material in cement and then fully encapsulating it in a steel welded shell, the material is protected from the external environment

• Gain advantages of a raised floor system

Benefits of EcoCore

Energy Savings

EcoCore panels are specifically designed to store energy in

order to shift demand to off-peak time periods when utility rates

are lowered in many locations. During the day, the PCM in the

EcoCore panel melts under the solar load along the perimeter.

By melting during the hot day, the energy is stored until the

temperature drops back below the 75°F threshold overnight

when off peak electricity rates, or free air economizing can be

used to resolidify the material.

Buildings are designed to meet a peak load of a given design

hour. By increasing the thermal mass of the building with

EcoCore panels, the building is capable of self regulating indoor

temperature, reducing the peak load of the building naturally.

EcoCore allows buildings to be designed utilizing less air, and

smaller HVAC systems.

Improved Comfort

By utilizing EcoCore Panels, the indoor environment of an office

can be noticeably improved. Throughout the normal office day

temperatures in a well designed on slab office with overhead

HVAC can fluctuate 2-4°F up or down. In a poorly designed

or aging office, the fluctuation can be upwards of 10°F on

a given day either due to insufficient design capacity or the

reduced efficiency of the HVAC system over time. A raised floor

solution utilizing the EcoCore Panel effectively evens out those

temperature swings, with a low physical mass, high thermal

mass solution that offers a wide range of additional benefits.

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Environmental Benefits

There are two energy saving components of using the EcoCore

panel. First is the ability to defer or postpone the peak load in

the space and release it overnight to allow a larger portion of the

load to be cooled with free economized air or cheaper electricity.

The second is the ability to then reduce the size of the HVAC

system since the building will require less air to handle the new

reduced peak load. These benefits will further optimize energy

performance to contribute towards LEED credits, in addition

to the many LEED contributions already associated with raised

floors and underfloor service distribution.

EcoCore: How it works12

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Typical OfficeEcoCore Office

ENERGY SAVINGS

PEAK LOAD

OFFSET

PEAK LOAD REDUCTION

EcoCore Perimeter Solution

Using EcoCore in the perimeter zone of the office will help to reduce the overall peak load in the space and delay the occurrence of the

peak load to later in the day. By reducing the overall peak load the amount of cooling required to keep the space comfortable is reduced.

In addition, by delaying the peak to later in the day the load can often be handled with free economizer cooling or with reduced rate electricity.

55

EcoCore Reduces and Offsets Peak Load to Save Energy

Solar load warms the panels during the day. As the panels warm the phase change material melts absorbing energy.

As the panels cool overnight the phase change material solidifies.

The energy is stored in the panels to be released during non-peak hours.

2:00PM 8:00PM 2:00AM

Applying EcoCore Panels

Building Conditions:

North Average Load: 60 Btu/lfEast Average Load: 120 Btu/lfSouth Average Load: 200 Btu/lfWest Average Load: 130 Btu/lfSolar Elevation Angle: 34°

Number of Panels Deep:

North: 60/65 = 0.9 ; 0 Rows of panelsEast: 120/65 = 1.8 ; 1 Row of panelsSouth: 200/65 = 3.1 ; 3 Rows of panelsWest: 130/65 = 2.0 ; 2 Rows of panels

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Application in Perimeter Zone

Selecting the appropriate number of rows of EcoCore panels

to install along the perimeter is something which can be done

once the solar loading of the building has been determined. The

typical rule of thumb is that for approximately every 70 Btu/lf of

solar loading for a given perimeter area a single row of EcoCore

panels can be installed to achieve maximum load offsetting.

Other items to consider are building location, solar elevation

angles (angle of the sun towards the building adjacent from the

horizon), window height, peak vs off-peak energy rates, access

to nighttime economizing, and perimeter UFAD solutions.

In the example shown we have determined an average solar

loadings of 60 Btu/lf, 120 Btu/lf, 220 Btu/lf, and 130 Btu/lf

(North, East, South, and West respectively). It has also been

determined that this floor space is located in a region with an

exceptionally low solar elevation angle, and is using full height

windows. Based on these parameters, we can accurately

determine that a significant amount of sunlight will directly impact

the raised floor in the east, south and west zones.

For more information about applying EcoCore to a specific

project please contact us at 800-231-7788 or email technical@

tateinc.com.

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Improves Energy PerformanceComparing Phase Change Thermal Storage to a building without

Tate provides an interactive energy performance tool designed

to help evaluate the skin load reduction between traditional slab

construction and utilizing Tate’s EcoCore panel in the perimeter

zone of a building. Download your copy at www.tateinc.com.

For more information about the energy saving potential of EcoCore

call us at 800-231-7788 or email technical@tateinc.com.

Tate®, ConCore®, GrateAire®, PosiLock®, PosiTile®, Floating Floors®, Integral Trim®, SustainAbility®, AirArrest®, DirectAire®, SmartAire® and PowerAire®, are registered trademarks of Tate Access Floors, Inc. ContainAireTM, RackAireTM, Air»ConnectTM and EcoCoreTM are Trademarks of Tate Access Floors Inc. © 2012 Tate Access Floors, Inc.

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In-floor Active Chilled BeamEnergy efficient perimeter heating & cooling for underfloor air distribution systems

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